EXPLORING TRAUMATIC SYMPTOMS AMONG ADULTS AND THEIR IMPACT ON PSYCHO-SOCIAL WELL-BEING

Abstract

Trauma exposure remains a substantial and comparatively under-researched public health concern among Pakistani adults, with limited baseline evidence on how trauma symptomatology relates to psycho-social well-being. This study examined the prevalence of trauma exposure characteristics and the relationship between trauma symptoms and psycho-social well-being among 80 trauma-exposed Pakistani adults. Participants completed the Trauma Symptom Checklist-40 (TSC-40) and the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF). The majority of participants (67.5%) reported interpersonal trauma exposure, and 42.5% had previously received psychological treatment. Trauma symptoms were strongly and negatively correlated with psycho-social well-being (r = -.79, p < .01). Multiple regression analyses indicated that Anxiety and Depression were the dominant unique predictors of overall psycho-social well-being (R² = .619) and its Emotional and Psychological Well-Being components, while Sleep Disturbance uniquely predicted Social Well-Being, independent of Anxiety and Depression. These findings indicate that trauma symptoms, and anxious and depressive symptomatology in particular, are central determinants of psycho-social well-being among trauma-exposed Pakistani adults, with direct implications for how trauma-focused interventions might be sequenced to maximize downstream well-being benefit.